Get Caught Up on Gears of War with Our Story Recap

Emergence Day/Gears of War 1

The world of Gears of War has always known war. The largest was the war between the Coalition of Ordered Governments and the Union of Independent Republics, which lasted for nearly 80 years over the near unlimited energy resource of Imulsion. That war ended when the COG managed to snag the orbital laser weapon known as the Hammer of Dawn to lay waste to UIR cities, at which point treaties were signed and the COG became the largest form of government on Sera. Unfortunately for them, the peace was short lived, as the Locust rose from the ground and wiped out most of the human population on what later became known as Emergence Day. To deny the Locust any advantages, the COG used the Hammers of Dawn for a scorched earth policy, leaving only Jacinto Plateau as the last stronghold against the underground monsters. Anyone not evacuated became known as the Stranded.

A decade after E-Day, protagonist Marcus Fenix left his post at the Battle of Ephyra to save his father Adam, who was a lead researcher in studying the Locust. He wasn’t able to save Adam, and was later court martialed and sentenced to 40 years in prison. Four years into that sentence, his childhood friend Dom Santiago comes to bust him out of prison to help him and Delta Squad deploy the Lightmass Bomb, which the COG believes can destroy the Locust. But before they can do that, they need to find the Resonator, which will let them map out the underground Hollow that the Locust live in and was last in the possession of Alpha Squad. Led by Minh Young Kim, Delta Squad later acquires former Thrashball player Augustus Cole of Alpha Squad, who leads them to Alpha. No sooner than they reunite do the Locust show up, and Kim is killed by General RAAM. After killing a Berserker, Marcus is promoted to Delta’s leader and leads Dom, Cole, and fellow Alpha survivor Damon Baird to a mining facility to deploy the Resonator.

Unfortunately, it turns out that it can’t provide data on the entire Hollow, so Delta heads to Marcus’ childhood home, where the full data is in Adam’s lab. They managed to get the data, kill a particularly nasty Brumak, and hitch a ride on a train that’s holding the Lightmass Bomb. But first, they have to get through RAAM, who they successfully kill, and the Bomb hits the Hollow. The tunnel networks are destroyed, but Locust Queen Myrrah says that this is nothing but a setback, and vengeance is coming.

Gears of War 2

Six months after deploying the Lightmass Bomb, Gears of War 2 begins, and things aren’t looking any better for the COG. Detonating the bomb has vaporized most of the Imulsion, creating a disease known as Rustlung that’s been known as a “horrible way to die.” To make things worse, cities are sinking in their complete entirety, forcing the COG to strike first with a full scale invasion. Marcus and Dom, along with rookie Ben Carmine (brother of Anthony from the first game), are successfully deployed into the Hollow. The three later discover that the Locust, through the help of Skorge, the leader of the Kantus Monks, are sinking cities via a giant Riftworm. Later on, the trio reunites with Baird and Cole, but not before discovering that the Locust are taking prisoners and torturing them. Tai Kaliso, another member of Delta Squad, was captured by Skorge and suffered their torture, the result of which led him to commit suicide.

Delta later winds up inside the Riftworm itself, whose parasitic insides kill Carmine. Fortunately, they kill the Riftworm via very chainsaw-based surgery. Before they can shower and rest on their laurels, Command orders them to head to a facility in the Kadar Mountains that has information on a back entrance to the Hollow. The facility, headed up by a creepy AI, contains mutated creatures of unknown origin that get awakened and force Delta to shoot and saw into chunky pieces. With the information in their possession, Delta heads to the Mountains, at which point Marcus and Dom break off to find Dom’s missing wife, Maria, who he’s been searching for for years. The torture has left her incredibly disfigured and unable to speak, so Dom tearfully euthanizes her.

Marcus and Dom reunite with Baird and Cole, and the four of them manage to reach Myrrah’s chamber. She informs them that the Locust have been fighting against the Lambent, Locust infected by Imulsion. This whole time, they’ve been sinking cities out of desperation, and Myrrah’s next plan is to flood the Hollow in order to wipe them out. Following the death of Skorge, Delta makes it back to Jacinto in the middle of their evacuation with a plan to detonate a bomb to wipe out both types of Locust in one blow. Marcus and Dom use a Brumak to clear a path for the COG to place a bomb in the Hollow, but after the bomb is downed, opt to use the Lambent-infected Brumak instead. The detonation causes the flooding of both Jacinto and the Hollow, with the COG successfully evacuating as many people as they can. In a post-credits moment, a transmission plays out, mournfully asking for help. That transmission is from none other than Adam Fenix.

Gears of War 3

18 months pass. Gears of War 3 begins in the summer, with the COG having disbanded after establishing camp on the island of Vectes. Delta Squad–which by now, consists of Marcus, Dom, Cole, Baird, Anya Stroud, Sam Byrne, Jace Stratton, and Clayton Carmine–has taken refuge at sea via the CNV Sovereign, which works as well as expected. Former Chairman Prescott arrives on the ship, handing a disc to Marcus that reveals that Adam is still alive and well. The Lambent launch an attack on the Sovereign, completely destroying it, but not before Delta manages to kill the giant Lambent fish tearing the carrier to pieces. Before dying, Prescott gives Marcus an encryption to a disc in possession of Colonel Hoffman that reveals Adam’s location on the secret COG base of Azura.

Delta Squad manages to make it to Hoffman at Anvil Gate, and after holding back a dual attack from Locust and Lambent, uncover the disc’s contents. Azura, as it turns out, is guarded by human-made hurricane generators, so the only way to get to the base is via submarine. Marcus, Dom, Anya, Sam, and Jace join up with Dizzy Wallin to find a submarine capable of the journey. Dom leads them to a town called Mercy that contains enough Imulsion to fuel the sub, at the same time discovering that humans are able to become Lambent as well. Dom sacrifices himself to save the others from the Lambent horde, forcing them to find Imulsion at the city of Char, run by Stranded leader Griffin. Even though they encounter Myrrah, Delta gains the fuel and begins the trek to Azura.

Upon arriving in Azura, in actuality a sanctuary and resort for Sera’s most elite individuals created in preparation for E-Day, Adam contacts them and reveals that he’s being held up at the main hotel tower. Marcus and crew are successful in shutting down the weather generator, allowing the Gears and the people of Gorasni to arrive and provide support. Cole and Baird join Marcus and Anya in making their way to Adam, who has a plan to stop the Lambent. Myrrah attacks Delta, angrily informing them that Adam had tried to work something out with her and the Locust for 20 years and wants to stop him at all costs because his plan will also kill the Locust. (Adam also tried working with her to find a way to kill the Lambent without harming the Locust, but ran out of time.) They defeat her and activate Adam’s energy wave that’ll destroy any cell infected with Imulsion. Said cells also include Adam himself, who injected Imulsion into his bloodstream in order to study it. Adam crumbles into ash, and Marcus kills Myrrah after she gloats over the scientist’s death. The Lambent and Locust die all over Sera, and Marcus mourns losing both his father and best friend. Anya reminds him of his father’s last words to live a real life, and the Gears look on at the sunset, finally at peace.

Gears of War 4

Gears of War 4 takes place 25 years after Gears 3. All Imulsion has been destroyed, which also took out fossil fuels, forcing humanity to find new ways of survival. There are only hundreds of thousands of humans left on Sera, divided into the reformed COG, and the Outsiders who live outside of the walled off cities. The planet is also subject to powerful windstorms known as “Windflares” that get deadlier with each type.

Instead of Marcus Fenix, players will take on the role of his and Anya’s son, JD. A former COG soldier, JD and his friend Del Walker defected after an unexplained event that led to them living with the Outsiders. Their group of Outsiders is abducted late at night by something that looks a lot like the Locust, leaving only the two men and Kait Diaz remaining. The three decide to find Kait’s mom, along with discovering the origins of these new enemies known only as the Swarm. And also to reunite JD and Marcus for some father/son bonding. Because family.